Past Dinner Meetings

2008 Dinner Meetings

• Norwich University, April 15, 2008
• College of the Holy Cross, April 22, 2008
• Framingham State College, May 8, 2008
• Simmons College, October 27, 2008

Norwich University, Northfield, Vermont

Thomas Garrity, Williams College
"Using Mathematical Maturity to Shape Our Courses, Our Curriculums and Our Careers"

April 15, 2008

Abstract: For the last few years, I've been in charge of mentoring new Williams faculty, from all departments. I've been surprised to learn that no other discipline that I know of has a term analogous to our "mathematical maturity." This talk will discuss how we can build on the rhetoric of mathematical maturity to shape not only our teaching and research careers but also the workings of our departments.

College of the Holy Cross, Worcester, Massachusetts

The Fifteenth Leonard C. Sulski Memorial Lecture

Donal B. O'Shea, Mount Holyoke College
"The Shape We're In: The Poincare Conjecture"

April 22, 2008

Framingham State College, Framingham, Massachusetts

The Sixth Annual Kenneth J. Preskenis Dinner Meeting

Lisa Hansen, Western New England College
"Eine Kleine Mathemusik"

May 8, 2008

Abstract: There are a wide variety of connections between mathematics and music, ranging from simple and obvious to quite abstract. In this talk, we will explore a variety of these connections as varied as probability, permutations, group theory and graph theory. We will focus on the art of change bell ringing and musical dice games such as Mozart’s Musikalisches Würfelspiel. The talk will feature both live and recorded music as well as many opportunities for audience participation.

Simmons College , Boston, Massachusetts

Christopher M. Danforth, University of Vermont

"Chaos and the Mathematics of Prediction:
Hurricane Katrina, Harry Potter, and Happiness"

October 27 , 2008

Abstract: For centuries, scientists have developed increasingly sophisticated mathematical models in an attempt to uncover the rules by which the physical world evolves. Their ultimate goal is not only to understand the nature of the systems they observe, but to predict how they will behave in the future. The modern computer has enabled vast improvements in many of the predictions made using mathematical models, and the internet has broadened their scope to include social behavior. In this talk, we discuss the mathematics and implications underlying prediction of the path of Hurricane Katrina, the next big entertainment hit, and emotional well being in the instant messaging era. We will also report on several striking observations regarding the relationship between author demographics (e.g. age, location) and the emotional content of millions of weblogs, as well as the relationship between musical genre and the emotional impact of song lyrics authored by hundreds of thousands of artists.

Biography: Christopher M. Danforth
Assistant Professor, Department of Mathematics and Statistics, University of Vermont
Adjunct Assistant Professor, Earth System Science Interdisciplinary Center, University of Maryland
Visiting Faculty Fellow, Vermont Advanced Computing Center

Dr. Danforth earned a B.S. with honors in Mathematics and Physics from Bates College in 2001. In 2006, he received a Ph.D. in Applied Mathematics and Scientific Computation from the University of Maryland, College Park, where he worked with James Yorke and Eugenia Kalnay of the Chaos group. He is currently on the faculty of the College of Engineering and Mathematical Sciences at the University of Vermont, where his work is on modeling and predictability of a variety of biological, social, and physical systems. Descriptions of his work are available at his website: http://www.uvm.edu/~cdanfort/

Maintained by Tommy Ratliff tratliff@wheatoncollege.edu
Last modified Monday March 2, 2009 3:50 PM , MAA Disclaimer